NAIA Releases Softball Tournament Matchups

5/9/2012

The Lady Eagles from Williams Baptist College will make their first NAIA national tournament appearance against Webber International University of Babson Park, Fla. The groups for the pool play stage of the 32nd annual softball championship were released Wednesday afternoon.

Play opens May 17th in Gulf Shores, Ala.

Williams’ 14th ranked squad will compete in a pool with Webber International, Thomas University and Oklahoma City University. The team at the top of the pool after all the teams play each other will advance to the double-elimination phase of the tournament.

Webber International holds a record of 37-20 on the season and earned an automatic berth in the national tournament by winning the Sun Conference. This will be its third trip to the championship. They are ranked 23rd in the final top 25 poll.

Thomas qualified for its fifth national tournament by finishing as runner-up in the Association of Independent Institutions Tournament. Its record is 21-28, and it has won one national championship in its history.

The most experienced team in the pool is Oklahoma City. This is its 26th appearance at the tournament, which includes eight championships. OCU is ranked third in the NAIA and has a record of 40-18. It won the Sooner Athletic Conference.

WBC qualified for the tournament by winning the American Midwest Conference Tournament. The Lady Eagles are 49-9 this season and will open against WIU on Thursday, May 17, at 10 a.m. They will play against Thomas on Friday, May 18, at 2:30 p.m. Their final contest in pool play will be against OCU on Saturday, May 19, at 5 p.m.

You can keep up with all tourney information at WBC’s tournament central link below: